Signal lamp unit



- S. M. DOVER SIGNAL LAMP UNIT 4 Filed April '1, 1940 TTORNEY,

Patented Sept. 1 5, 1942 U N [TE D ES Q'F F 115C E SIG A LAMRZUNIT Samuel M.;Dver,' Chicago, Ill. Application Aprilgl, 194.11,.Seri'alNo. 327,173

3 Claims.

This invention relates tosignal lights,. and more particularly to such lights as .are adapted to. be, mounted, on. the outside ofautomob-ile trucks or the. like, and is speciallyconcerned witha multiple light unit, such as showrnfor in stance, in my Patent No. 2,033,692,..issued March 1936, and. No. 2,093,806, issuedgSeptember 21, 1937, upon which the present invention is an improvement.

It is. oneof .the objects .ofthe present. invention. to provide a light unitof :the above mentioned character which may be secured to the body of an automobile and. which has suificient flexibility to allow it to be, flexed to conformwith a curved contour of. an automobile body to which it. is to be secured.

It .is 1a ,still further. object .of. thepresent in.- vention to provide a light unit ofthe abovecharacter with an improved contact structure for making contact with anjelectric light. bulb. The contact structure comprises two spacedstrips of conducting material embedded in a body of rubber or other flexible insulating material and separated fromone another by said rubber. One of the strips. is stamped or otherwise formed to provide one or more electric light .bulb sockets. The other strip is positionedbeneath the first strip so that the tip of a .bulbinserted into. a socket engages said other conductor strip. The rubber is vulcanized, around the strips thus em.- bedding the strips in the bodyof rubber and holding them, against displacement due to vibration or the like.

It is a stillfurther object of, the present in.- vention to provide a light unit of the above men tioned character wherein therubber body is so constructedas to facilitate the maintenance. of a resilient. pressure contact against. the tipof an electric light bulb, which pressure serves notonly to maintain electrical contact with the bulb. but also serves to maintain the bulb against vibration or other objectionable movementwithin the socket.

The attainment of the above andfurther objects of the present invention will be apparent from, the following specification taken. in con.- junction with the accompanying; drawing forming a part thereof.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a side view of a lighting unit constructed in accordanceflwith the present invention, certain parts of the unit being broken away to illustrate the construction;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the unit of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken along the line 3.-.3 ofFigurel and looking in the direction. of the arrows;

Figure 4is a transverse sectional view. taken along the line .4-.-4 of Figure .2 and looking inL-the direction. of the arrows and Figures 5 and flare fragmentary perspective views .of thetwocontact making strips.

InlFigure 1 I haveshown, by. way of illustration, a multiple light. unit I having threeflights thereon. This is by way of illustrationonly, as the .unit may have alarger or. lesser. number of lights thereona Thelight unit I: comprisesan integral. body of .rubbenhaving enlarged heads 2,1.3 and 4 joined. by .shankportions 5 and;6 inegral therewith and thus. .forming. a comparativelylongand narrow. unit. Two metalliccontact strips. 8.and. 9 are embedded in therubber of. the lighting unit, one above the other, and are separated from one another. throughout their entirelength. by the rubber or the body of .the lighting unit. In. the. molding operation the strips 81: and..9 .are separated by a layer I9 of rubber which becomes. integrally united withthe rest ofgthe. rubber during vulcanization. The contact strips. 8 and 9 extend lengthwise of the lightunitand. at one end,-are.spread apart laterally to provide terminals ll--ll for establishing. circuit. connections thereto, and through the terminals establishing circuit. connections .to the three electric light bulbs in. a manner to be presently set forth.

The conductor strip 9.has a socket l2 formed therein at the center of each head 2, 3 andll. Thesocket I2 may be formed in any desired manner as, for instance, by stamping a sheet steel. strip 9 .to form .a hole therein andv then punching .the metal to 'form .a peripherally extending flange or circular sleeve I3 having longitudinally extending grooves I4-l5 for receiving thepin. on the stemv of. an electric light bulb. The contact strip8 consists, preferably, but not necessarily, of a copper braid. having narrow brass. or copper sleeves l8 clamped thereon and located centrally ofeach of the sockets l2. Each :sleeve 18 consists of 'alnarrow piece of metal folded.:ar0und. the braid and pressed into pressure engagement with the braid.- The sleeves l8 thus constitute contacts for electric light bulbs. The strip 8 extends the-circuit to the sleeves l8 while .at the same. time not interferingwith bending or flexing of the lighting unit.

It is to be noted that the strip of rubber It between the contact strips 8 and 9 has a circular hole or opening 20 therein at the center of each head 2-34, opposite the sockets I2, This permits insertion of a, light bulb into the socket l2 until the tip of the bulb engages a sleeve l8 of the strip 8.

Each head 2-34 of the light unit includes an upstanding circular flange 22 having an inwardly extending rim 23 that acts as a bezel for a light lens 24 that is provided with an outwardly projecting peripheral flange 25 at its base. The rubber is sufliciently flexible to permit deformation of the rim 23 to allow insertion of the flan e 25 of the bulb, and is sufficiently resilient to spring back and form a watertight, dustproof seal at 26 between the lamp lens 24 and the rim 23. It is, of course, to be understood that specifically different means may be provided for holding the lens 24 in place.

The bottom of the unit is comparatively flat, as indicated at 28, to facilitate mounting of the unit flat against the surface of the body of an automobile to which the unit is to be secured. The lighting unit is sufficiently flexible to permit flexing of the same to follow the curvature of a curved body to which it is secured and yet lie flush against that body. The unit may be secured in place in any desired manner as, for instance, by nails or screws driven through holes 30 formed in each of the three heads 2, 3 and 4, thus securing the unit to the body of the automobile.

The base of the unit is provided with cavities or spaces 32 opposite each head 234, and centrally located with respect to the socket [2. This leaves a thin layer of rubber 33 at the base of the unit opposite each socket, and an air pocket at 32 between the lighting unit and the structure to which the unit is secured. This permits flexing of the rubber at 33 towards the base 28 of the unit.

An electric light bulb 35 having a cylindrical stem portion 36 is inserted into the socket l2. The stem 36 has a pin 31 provided in the usual manner, which pin slides through the grooves l4-l5 in the socket. Thereafter the light bulb is turned through a small angle so that the pins prevent retraction of the bulb through the bayonet joint thus formed. The tip of the bulb, indicated at 38, presses against the contact [9 of the strip 8. The dimensioning is such that the tip of the bulb presses the contact strip 8 downwardly a small amount so that the contact strip 8 and the rubber 33 exert a pressure against the tip 38 and thus serve to hold the bulb snugly in place against rattling, vibration or the like. The provision of the air pocket 32 permits the rubber 33 and the strip 8 to be flexed downwardly against their natural resiliency so that they exert the requisite pressure against the tip of the light bulb.

Each of the three lights of the multiple light unit is completely sealed at the base by the integral construction of the body of the rubber, and is sealed at the lens by the tension of the rubber rim 23 around the lens.

In compliance with the requirements of the patent statutes I have here shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention. It is, however, to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction here shown, the same being merely illustrative of the principles of the invention. What I consider new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A light unit comprising a comparatively long and narrow body of flexible rubber-like material having a plurality of spaced holes therein for receiving electric lamp bulbs, circuit connections embedded in the body and extending to the holes and comprising two superposed metallic strips separated from one another throughout their entire length, one of said strips comprising a flat, narrow, metal sheet having a hole therein opposite each of the holes in said body for permitting the base of an electric light bulb to extend therethrough into contact with the other strip, said other strip comprising a flexible braid to facilitate flexing of the unit, said one strip having a peripheral flange around the hole forming a socket for the stem of the light bulb.

2. A multiple signal light unit adapted to be secured to a support and comprising a comparatively long and narrow body of flexible molded material, a pair of juxtaposed spaced apart conductors embedded in the molded body and extending lengthwise thereof, the upper conductor comprising a flat narrow metal sheet having a plurality of holes formed therein and an open ended sleeve surrounding each hole, said sleeves constituting sockets for receiving electric light bulbs, the conductor below the flat sheet being exposed at the center of each sleeve to constitute tip terminals for contacting the tips of bulbs inserted in said sleeves, said tip terminals being backed by the molded material and being flexible in a direction away from the front face of the unit, the back of the unit having a cavity formed opposite each tip terminal to permit flexing of the molded material which is back of the tip terminal in a direction towards the bottom surface of the unit even while the bottom surface is fixed against movement.

3. A multiple signal light unit adapted to be I secured to a support and comprising a comparatively long and narrow body of flexible molded material to permit flexing of the same to bring the bottom thereof to the same contour as that of the support to which the unit is to be secured, a pair of juxtaposed spaced apart conductors embedded in the molded body and extending lengthwise thereof, the upper conductor comprising a flat narrow metal sheet having a plurality of holes formed therein and an open ended sleeve surrounding each hole, said holes forming sockets for receiving electric light bulbs, the conductor below the flat sheet being flexible braid to facilitate flexing of the unit and having contact pieces secured thereto and exposed at the center of each sleeve to constitute tip terminals for contacting the tips of bulbs inserted in said sleeves, said tip terminals being backed by the molded material and being yieldable in a direction away from the front face of theunit against the resilient action of the subjacent molded material, the back of the unit having a cavity formed opposite each tip terminal to permit flexing of the molded material which is back of the tip terminal in a direction towards the bottom surface of the unit even while the bottom surface is held fixed against movement.

SAMUEL M. DOVER. 

